‘Philly’s a brutal place to play’

Andrew Bogut has reserved special praise for fellow Aussie ace Ben Simmons, after the youngster was booed by his home crowd in Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center.

“Philly is a brutal place to play. I’ve had a few teammates in the last 14 years who’ve played in Philly in the past and they’ve had some very interesting stories to tell,” Bogut wrote for Yahoo Sport Australia this week.

“That’s kind of a ‘Philly’ thing to do but I guess it worked in a way if you argue it like that because they bounced back and smashed it in Game 2.

Two AFL stars have shared the ways they deal with the difficulties of professional football. For Collingwood’s Travis Varcoe, it was the effect of racist trolls on his life on and off the field, while for Brisbane’s Mitch Robinson, it is the truth of concussion.

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A FIERY LOCKER ROOM

Bogut went on to reveal what really went on inside the Golden State locker room after his Warriors let a 31-point lead slip against the LA Clippers.

“We were pissed off about it and we need to get better,” Bogut continued.

“But I think that’s a good thing. If it was quiet in the locker room after a game like that it wouldn’t be a great sign.”

A TOUCHING TRIBUTE

The Melbourne Demons will pay respects to their 30 former players who lost their lives serving in World War I and II with a specially designed Anzac Day Eve guernsey for their match against Richmond.

One of those players was Ron Barassi Sr, the father of VFL legend Ron Jr. This week, the Demons presented Barassi with a replica guernsey, bearing the name of his father and the 29 other players lost in active service.

“Certainly from my point of view as Test captain, I’ll be speaking to them regularly on the field about tactics or how we might get someone out.

“Off the field they’re both absolutely professional athletes, so we expect them to slot back into our team and even though they won’t be in official leadership roles, they’ll be leaders in all other facets.”

Read the full column to get Paine’s thoughts on Josh Hazlewood’s World Cup snub, the newly contracted James Pattinson and why Peter Handscomb could still be considered a ‘no.2 wicketkeeper”.

"Although they won't be in official leadership roles, they'll be leaders in all other facets."In an exclusive column,…

‘HEARTBREAKING’ DISCOVERY

A recent spate of online racism directed at AFL players has seen painful memories resurface for a number of players, including Collingwood’s Travis Varcoe.

While the most recent foul tirades have been directed at the likes of Eddie Betts and Liam Ryan, Varcoe recalled the devastating effect a fan’s Facebook post had on him and his family, while speaking to ABC’s 7:30 program.

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